Today’s Meditation

From The Upper Room The World’s Most Widely Read Daily Devotional Guide

Read Romans 3:21-26

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

-Romans 3:23 (NRSV)

ON a cold and wintry February evening, my wife and I were running an errand. I stepped on some black ice, my feet flew from under me, and I landed on the ground, breaking my ankle. As a result, my foot was put in a cast and I was given crutches. I was thankful that my disability was only temporary.

The season of Lent lasts fortysix days, about the length of time it takes for a broken bone to heal. To me, the cast I wear in this season of atonement is an outward sign of an inward human condition. I am a fallen, broken man; and I humbly admit that.

Only by the grace of God’s healing hand is any of us mended. In the many circumstances of life, our response to that grace is what matters. Lent is the season to “Repent, and believe in the good news” (Mark 1:15, NRSV). Healing, like sanctification, is a process; and it cannot be rushed. We submit, trust, and wait on the Lord. God will deliver.

Jim M. Quint

(Kansas, USA)

Prayer:
We give thanks, O God, that where sin abounds, your grace abounds even more, as we pray, “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.”* Amen.

Thought for the day:
Responding to God’s grace will keep us busy for the rest of our lives.